South American Gray Foxes (Lycalopex griseus)
Puerto Natales, Chile.
On the second day of our excursion we went by road into the Parque Nacional Torres del Paine.
Torres del Paine National Park is a national park encompassing mountains, glaciers, lakes, and rivers in southern Chilean Patagonia. The Cordillera del Paine is the centrepiece of the park. It lies in a transition area between the Magellanic subpolar forests and the Patagonian Steppes. The park is located 112 km (70 mi) north of Puerto Natales and 312 km (194 mi) north of Punta Arenas. The park borders Bernardo O'Higgins National Park to the west and the Los Glaciares National Park to the north in Argentine territory.
'Torres' means 'towers' in Spanish. 'Paine' means 'blue' in the native Tehuelche (Aonikenk) language. It was established as a National Park in 1959.
The South American foxes (Lycalopex), commonly called raposa in Portuguese, or zorro in Spanish, are a genus from South America of the subfamily Caninae. Despite their name, they are not true foxes, but are a unique canid genus more closely related to wolves and jackals than to true foxes; some of them resemble foxes due to convergent evolution. The South American gray fox, Lycalopex griseus, is the most common species, and is known for its large ears and a highly marketable, russet-fringed pelt.
The South American gray fox (Lycalopex griseus), also known as the Patagonian fox, the chilla or the gray zorro, is endemic to the southern part of South America.
It is a small fox-like canid. The head is reddish-brown flecked with white. The ears are large and there is a distinct black spot on the chin. The pelage is brindled, with agouti guard hairs and a short, dense, pale undercoat. The underparts are pale grey. The limbs are tawny and the thighs are crossed by a dark bar. The long, bushy tail has a dark dorsal stripe and dark tip with a paler, mottled underside.
South American Gray Foxes (Lycalopex griseus)
Puerto Natales, Chile.
On the second day of our excursion we went by road into the Parque Nacional Torres del Paine.
Torres del Paine National Park is a national park encompassing mountains, glaciers, lakes, and rivers in southern Chilean Patagonia. The Cordillera del Paine is the centrepiece of the park. It lies in a transition area between the Magellanic subpolar forests and the Patagonian Steppes. The park is located 112 km (70 mi) north of Puerto Natales and 312 km (194 mi) north of Punta Arenas. The park borders Bernardo O'Higgins National Park to the west and the Los Glaciares National Park to the north in Argentine territory.
'Torres' means 'towers' in Spanish. 'Paine' means 'blue' in the native Tehuelche (Aonikenk) language. It was established as a National Park in 1959.
The South American foxes (Lycalopex), commonly called raposa in Portuguese, or zorro in Spanish, are a genus from South America of the subfamily Caninae. Despite their name, they are not true foxes, but are a unique canid genus more closely related to wolves and jackals than to true foxes; some of them resemble foxes due to convergent evolution. The South American gray fox, Lycalopex griseus, is the most common species, and is known for its large ears and a highly marketable, russet-fringed pelt.
The South American gray fox (Lycalopex griseus), also known as the Patagonian fox, the chilla or the gray zorro, is endemic to the southern part of South America.
It is a small fox-like canid. The head is reddish-brown flecked with white. The ears are large and there is a distinct black spot on the chin. The pelage is brindled, with agouti guard hairs and a short, dense, pale undercoat. The underparts are pale grey. The limbs are tawny and the thighs are crossed by a dark bar. The long, bushy tail has a dark dorsal stripe and dark tip with a paler, mottled underside.